Arkansas gets an ‘F’ on updated social distancing scoreboard

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA) — Arkansas gets an ‘F’ on an updated social distancing scoreboard from the data company Unacast, which uses cell phone data to track how Americans’ movements have changed since the outbreak of COVID-19.

The interactive map assigns a letter grade to each state in the country based on how its citizens are responding to social-distancing messaging. The company says each letter grade is assigned based on two main metrics: decrease in average mobility (based on total distance traveled) and decrease in non-essential visits. Each metric is judged against normal travel behavior prior to the outbreak of COVID-19.

The grading scale breaks down as follows:

A: > 70% decrease

B: 55-70% decrease

C: 40-55% decrease

D: 25-40% decrease

F: <25% decrease

Arkansas is currently one of seven states with an ‘F’ grade on the scoreboard along with Alabama, Oklahoma, Iowa, Wyoming, Missouri, and Mississippi.

Unacast’s previous grading system listed Arkansas at a ‘D.’ The data company’s new standards are stricter, setting a 70 percent reduction as an ‘A’ grade. Unacast says it pulled the 70 percent figure based on what data has shown in Italy and what could be expected under a total shutdown.